michelle obama

Our Hot 20 Under 40 Readers' Choice earlier this year proved to be a tight race, with dozens of local luminaries being nominated from all the coolest corners of city life. Case in point: one of our fiercest contestants, Melissa Hung from Hyphen Magazine and a leader over at WritersCorps, was just given a prestigious national award by Michelle Obama at the White House this past week.

For the last month, the First Lady’s upper arms have been in the media spotlight almost as much as her husband’s economic stimulus plan. Somewhere between seeing the angles of her bare limbs gracing the March cover of Vogue and Maureen Dowd’s conclusion that Michelle Obama’s arms constitute “the only bracing symbol of American strength right now,” we started to get a tad envious.

Whether she wants it or not, every First Lady comes under style scrutiny that lasts not just an evening or the length of her time in the White House, but for all posterity. The inaugural ball gowns worn by each, for example, have ended up in the Smithsonian since Helen Taft started the tradition in 1909, when she donated to the museum the white silk chiffon number she wore on her husband’s first night as president.